TikTok-famous, award-winning, and born of bibliotherapy and belonging, this Aberystwyth independent is a soulful coastal sanctuary.
Set just one street back from the windswept beauty of Aberystwyth’s seafront, The Bookshop by the Sea is no ordinary shop. It’s a tide-washed haven of poetry readings, generation-defying book clubs and stories-as-medicine – ‘a literary lifeboat for the coastal community’. The shop was founded in 2021 by Freya Blyth, a literature and creative writing graduate, poet, and former librarian who first came to Wales from the Lake District for university. ‘I absolutely loved the community here,’ she says.
‘It’s that rare combination – sea and mountains, nature and connection. I’m from a small rural town, so I know how powerful it is when people know each other, and take care of each other. And I’ve always been drawn to shorelines.
‘Before I came to Wales for university, I was unwell. The thought of seeing the sea again was what kept me going: that horizon felt like hope. There’s something both peaceful and liberating about the ocean; it opens up doorways in the same way reading does. Here in Aberystwyth, the sea creates a whole rhythm to life. People walk at sunset, gather for bonfires, watch the starlings dance. It’s a different kind of culture – one that draws you outside, slows you down, and tunes you in.’
A NEW BEGINNING
When Covid-19 hit, Freya was working at the university’s library, but with lockdowns keeping public spaces shut, she began dreaming up a place where people could still connect.
‘Libraries weren’t allowed to open, but commercial spaces were,’ she says. ‘So I thought, what if I could open a bookshop by the sea that felt like a library, a living room, a place to gather again? It was so important that the bookshop was by the sea – it influences everything I do, from the books I choose, to the poetry I write. The sea connects places, people, stories. It reminds me we’re all part of something bigger. That sense of connection, of openness – that’s what I wanted the bookshop to feel like.’
From the first poetry nights to the 40-person-strong book club, Freya’s vision bloomed – even as storms battered the building. ‘Our first shop was literally right on the seafront. You could throw a stone into the ocean from our window. And then one day, a storm hit. A wave went over the top of the lighthouse – and over our roof. It poured through the ceiling. The books were ruined.’
After six soggy months, Freya found new premises just a street away – still within earshot of the waves, but far enough away to keep the pages dry. ‘It was sad, picking apart the wet books, but we kept going.’
It’s a determination rooted in something deeper than business. Diagnosed with dyslexia at university, Freya’s relationship to reading has been a form of therapy.
‘Reading can be a challenge, but it also opened up whole worlds and that’s made me even more passionate about sharing books with others.
I really believe books can help to heal people. Stories connect us in a way the news never could.’
USING TIKTOK
Freya makes use of social media to let her audience know what is happening at the bookshop. Although she now has over 43,000 TikTok followers and millions of views, she didn’t start out with a plan to use the platform to reach new literary fans. ‘One rainy Sunday, no one had come in all day, so I filmed a little book recommendation. It got 10,000 views overnight, and I thought, well, that’s more than I’ve had through the door all week!’
Since then, visitors have made what Freya calls ‘book pilgrimages’ to the shop, drawn by its inclusive vibe, beautifully wrapped ‘Blind Date with a Book’ offerings, and commitment to supporting causes, including mobile libraries for children in Ethiopia.
‘They already know us when they arrive. They’ve seen the shop online. They’ve heard the poetry. And when they walk in, they say, “We’re here
in real life.” It’s magic.’
The Bookshop by the Sea is constantly reinventing itself, with plans to launch The Bookshop Diaries – a YouTube series about the highs and lows of coastal bookselling and being the driving force behind the Aberystwyth Poetry Festival, which Freya also founded – and events such as fireside readings on the beach.
‘There’s something electric about hearing poetry read aloud,’ she says. ‘It’s like live music – the author’s voice is wrapped around the words. It comes alive.’
CONNECTED TO THE SEA
Perhaps part of what makes this bookshop so special is that it moves like the tide – open-hearted, ever-shifting, always returning to home shores.
‘When you grow up by lakes and live beside the ocean, you understand how water holds stories. It carries them. Connects them. Connects
us,’ says Freya.
Her favourite place in Aberystwyth is the lighthouse, which she describes as being ‘a kind of sanctuary. You’ve got the hills at your back, the sea out front, and the sun setting right there. It’s breathtaking. It reminds you how small you are, in the best possible way. Books, too, seem to shimmer differently beside the sea. There’s something special about reading on the beach.’
In a world that can feel increasingly fractured, The Bookshop by the Sea offers something which is quiet but radical: a place of stillness and storytelling, tucked away between the mountains and the waves – a little literary lighthouse guiding readers to a sense of connection and community.
For more information, visit thebookshopbythesea.co.uk.
